The problem of the gauge hierarchy is brought up in a hypercomplex scheme for a [Formula: see text] field theory; in such a scheme, a compact gauge group is deformed through a [Formula: see text]-parameter that varies along a noncompact internal direction, transverse to the [Formula: see text] compact one, and thus an additional [Formula: see text] gauge symmetry is incorporated. This transverse direction can be understood as an extra internal dimension, which will control the spontaneous symmetry breakdown, and will allow us to establish a mass hierarchy. In this mechanism, there is no brane separation to be estabilized as in the braneworld paradigm, however, a different kind of fine-tuning is needed in order to generate the wished electroweak/Planck hierarchy. By analyzing the effective self-interactions and mass terms of the theory, an interesting duality is revealed between the real and hybrid parts of the effective potential. This duality relates the weak and strong self-interaction regimes of the theory, due to the fact that both mass terms and self-coupling constants appear as one-parameter flows in [Formula: see text]. Additionally, the [Formula: see text]-deformation will establish a flow for the electromagnetic coupling that mimics the renormalization group flow for the charge in QED.
Gauge hierarchy generation and cosmology in locally supersymmetric guts